kscans

Chapter 237 - The World of the Jar of Holy Oil and the Crystal Palace

Hanging onto Laciel's spear, we flew through the World of the Jar of Holy Oil. We were enveloped in darkness, and I lost all sense of up and down. When we left her dwelling, we could feel ourselves moving as the floating palace shrank in the distance. But now, I couldn't even tell if we were moving or standing still.

"If we travel with this spear, couldn't we go to the other goddesses' spaces too?"

asked Myra, who was clinging on behind me.

"And do what when we get there? They're all probably just like this one. You want to lose your faith like I did?"

"Hmph! What do you mean, 'like this one'?!"

Laciel shouted, but since it was true, I had nothing to say. Besides, even if we could go, we wouldn't know where we'd be transported to when we returned to our original world. If we were sent back to a completely unknown land, we'd have no way of getting around.

"If those palace-like buildings are sealing the goddesses, then we could destroy them with this spear..."

Myra brought the conversation back.

"For Laciel, it would be a simple matter of destroying it, feeling good about it, and then returning when her summoning time is up. But the remaining goddesses and us would die."

Besides, if she couldn't destroy the dungeon walls, I had a feeling she couldn't destroy a goddess's palace either.

"We don't have to go with her. We can just wait in Lady Laciel's room. She can bring us back."

"I see. It might be a good idea to have Laciel meet the other goddesses. What do you think?"

I still couldn't see where what she wanted was leading. I wanted to break the stalemate, so I posed the question to Laciel, but she didn't answer. Out of spite, I groped her chest.

"Aun... Mash."

"What?"

"It's the Crystal Palace."

I peered past her back. A lone object floated in the darkness. It was the pyramid floating above the city of Miglutt, glowing an emerald green. At the same time, the scenery warped. My mana was running out.

Without a moment's hesitation, Laciel plunged into the crystal-covered wall of the pyramid.

"Laciel, in front of you! We're going to crash!"

I braced for impact and squeezed my eyes shut, but there was no shock at all. We passed right through to the inside. I looked back, but the crystal wall was gone without a trace, and only a dark space stretched out behind us. I composed myself and looked forward, and my breath caught in my throat. Corridors covered in crystal stretched out in countless layers. A complex, sprawling labyrinth filled my vision. It was the same view as from inside the dungeon. We continued to fly, weaving through the corridors. After a while, I saw a spot where the labyrinth was broken off. She landed gracefully at its edge. I got off the spear and looked around.

"Are we back?"

I took a few steps, surveying the corridor, and my legs tangled, nearly causing me to fall.

"Master!"

Famu threw her arms around me to stop me, but we were almost thrown into the space beyond the broken corridor. Mizuki grabbed my arm, and Sameim grabbed Famu's, pulling us back. Their hands let go, but I couldn't let go of Famu. Even with her support, it was difficult to stand. My vision was going dark. It seemed I had no mana left in my body.

"Laciel..."

"Yes?"

Someone's hand touched my cheek.

"I couldn't keep my promise again..."

"You really couldn't. Next time, please escort me properly."

"You're the one who's trying to make us fight!"

Did my last words reach her? My consciousness was fading.

"Famu... find... Toratsuna..."

My consciousness returned with a soft sensation on my lips. This time it has to be Famu, I thought, and sucked harder, seeking the magic recovery potion in her mouth.

"Ngh... nnh... nguh..."

The lips felt a little fuller. Had she gained some weight recently? No, had she grown? I wrapped my arms around her back. The sensation was softer than I expected. Especially her chest. Just as I was about to press my body against her, someone pulled me away. I opened my eyes to see Myra's blurry figure.

"M-Myra... why?"

"'Why' what?!"

Myra puffed out her cheeks. I scrambled to sit up and looked around. We were in the same place Laciel had brought us. I spotted Famu in the back, watching me alongside Sameim.

"Famu! It was your job to wake me up! Why—"

"I-it's not my job!"

Famu's cheeks were red.

"That's right! It's not Famu's job! From now on, we're taking turns!"

Myra said.

"Turns...?"

"...I'm next,"

Marmi said, pointing to herself.

"..."

I glanced at Famu. She quickly looked down, but I thought I saw the corners of her eyes droop. I stood up and walked over to Famu.

"It's been like this since two days ago, probably. What's gotten into you?"

Ever since we returned to Richel, her attitude had seemed strange. Distant, I guess you could say.

"Nothing's gotten into me,"

Famu replied. "More importantly, let's go find Toratsuna."

Famu started walking. Sameim ran up to her side. Marmi followed after her.

"What happened?"

I found myself sandwiched between Mizuki and Myra. Urged on by the two of them, I started walking.

"I have absolutely no idea."

"Really?"

At that, Mizuki and Myra exchanged a look over my head.

"In that case, I think I understand."

"Yes, I understand as well."

At their words, I couldn't help but look back and forth between them. Their gazes were downcast, and the corners of their mouths were turned down slightly. It felt less like they were exasperated with me and more like they were worried.

"I have no idea what she's thinking."

"Really?"

When I nodded, Mizuki's mouth fell open as she looked at me.

"It's because Sameim is here, isn't it?"

"Is that it? Why would she act like that just because Sameim is here?"

"Well, she's embarrassed, or maybe it's not quite right to say she's putting on a brave face, but you don't like kissing in front of your friends, do you?"

"Really? I don't mind at all!"

I said, trying to hug Mizuki, but she must have read my intentions and quickly dodged.

We continued walking through the Crystal Palace. Famu was in the lead, drawing a map on a piece of paper. Sameim was peeking over her shoulder.

"Are we just walking through empty space...?"

"The place we arrived at wasn't a severed corridor, but a dead end that seemed to have collapsed. So, it must connect to somewhere, right?"

Mizuki and Myra were discussing. I believe that the ability of [Yasakani no Magatama] is not to destroy dungeons, but to remake them. The sense of unease that New World's Etowan had couldn't have been noticed if only a part of the maze had been remade. If they had found a place where the dungeon was broken, it would have been an obvious anomaly, not a sense of unease. From that, I can infer that on this forty-ninth floor, the path from the entrance to the Area Guardian is sealed. And we should be walking on the Area Guardian's side. If Toratsuna is alive, he should be on this side too. When Toratsuna fought the Messiah party on this floor, he used [Yasakani no Magatama] to sever the corridor and escape to the Area Guardian's side. And Etowan feels a sense of unease because he can never reach the Area Guardian's room. That's my theory. Perhaps my theory was correct, because I could see the entrance to the Area Guardian's room.

"What should we do? We still haven't found Toratsuna-san,"

Myra said, looking at me. If we defeated the Area Guardian and went outside, it would be difficult to get back to this place. I wanted to finish exploring the entire corridor before going outside. Also, I was uneasy about fighting the Area Guardian without being able to use Goddess Summon. The ideal scenario would be to meet up with Toratsuna and have him restore the dungeon to its original state.

"The door... is open..."

Famu murmured. Indeed, unlike the other doors we had seen, this one, which should have been closed, was ajar. Hiding, I peeked inside.

"It looks the same as usual inside..."

Famu whispered. It was indeed a circular, arena-like space, but in the center, there was a man sitting, clutching a greatsword. He looked large-boned but emaciated. His hair was messy and his beard was long. His form, draped in what looked like gray rags, was that of a beggar. The man's head slowly moved. From between the strands of his hair, a dark gaze shot out, as if to pin us down.

"Toratsuna?"

He didn't answer, just stared at us. Since he had already noticed us, there was no point in hiding. I glanced at my companions, and they nodded. Steeling myself, I stepped into the Area Guardian's room. The others followed. Even after we all entered, the door didn't close. It seemed he wasn't the Area Guardian himself. As I led my group towards the man, he stood up. He drew his greatsword and pointed its tip at Sameim.

"That woman... you're friends with Yuki."

"Wait! It's a misunderstanding!"

I tried to step between the man and Sameim, but Famu had the same idea, and our shoulders collided. In that instant, the man's body seemed to float, and he closed the distance to Sameim with incredible speed, swinging his greatsword down. Sameim barely dodged the blow. But her severed hair danced in the air, and she stumbled and collapsed. Without her magical enhancement, dodging the man's first attack was all she could manage. The man raised his sword for another strike at the unarmed girl.

"Hey, listen to me!"

I reflexively drew my sword and blocked his slash. It was an incredibly heavy blow for someone with such a thin frame.

"Kuh!"

My knees almost buckled, and my hands went numb. He turned to face me directly. Then, he swung his sword at me. I barely managed to parry the blow, but a sharp pain ran through my arm. I looked down to see fresh blood flowing.

"Listen to me!"

He didn't seem to hear my shouts. The man swung his sword again. I backed away, blocking the successive slashes. While this was happening, Famu helped Sameim up, and Mizuki and Myra also drew their weapons and began to surround Toratsuna.

"Stop! Toratsuna... no, Ko-kun! We weren't looking for you to fight. Shizuka asked us to!"

At those words, the man's movements stopped. Seeing this, I signaled to Mizuki and the others not to fight.

"Shizuka? Is she in this city..."

He sighed, lowered his sword, and loosened his grip. I took a breath. I looked at him again. He was tall but thin. His hair was overgrown and messy. He had a scruffy beard under his nose and on his chin. I had called him a beggar earlier, but he also looked like a hermit. Shizuka had said he was a year younger than her, but he didn't look it. Though, if I thought of it that way, the skin on his face seemed somewhat healthy. But that skin was also dirty. He probably hadn't washed in a long time.

"Toratsuna, we were searching this floor for you."

"She was... exploring a dungeon?"

"That's right. More importantly, you are Toratsuna, right?"

He nodded. His sword swayed, and its tip pointed at Sameim.

"Are Shizuka and that woman working together?"

"That's a misunderstanding too. We traveled with Shizuka from Heilon to this city to find you. We met Sameim here. She was enslaved and was just following Yuki's orders. She's not a bad person."

"And I'm supposed to believe that?"

Toratsuna brushed his bangs back and glared at me. The tip of his sword was still pointed at Sameim. Famu warily placed a hand on the sword at her waist. Everyone, friend and foe alike, was too hot-headed. To get Toratsuna to lower his guard, I thought of information that only someone close to Shizuka would know.

"Alright. Then, her special skills are 'Raging Condom,' 'Scales of Love,' and 'Bamboo Scale.' And I have one of the condoms Shizuka created right here!"

I took out the condom I had secretly kept from when she had summoned it from my storage. It had 'Threatening 0.001mm' written on it. Toratsuna's expression instantly turned grim, and the tip of his sword was now pointed at me.

"You! Did you sleep with Shizuka?!"

I frantically pointed at Mizuki.

"N-no! I-I was saving this to use on the woman over there, Mizuki!"

"Huh? Me?!"

Mizuki jumped back in surprise. Seeing this, Toratsuna took my words as an excuse and glared at me with the face of a demon.

"You! I'm going to kill you!"

His words echoed through the Area Guardian's room.